


Panic Puncture

by NullBubby



Category: Nitrome, Scribblenauts (Video Games)
Genre: Robot Invasion, chasing a grape
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:01:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27218338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NullBubby/pseuds/NullBubby
Summary: Since creation, a lonesome robot has been sentenced to the lifelong task of carrying groceries down a street, endlessly eyeing the way forward in indifference.Just add some more robots to the mix and that'll make a whole world of variety.





	Panic Puncture

A rooster hat, then vanished, assimilated by distance before a look back could be taken. Through most long dispersed already, the pavement, among others, stood by, detouring an endless labyrinth forward, down the hollow streets, quiet buildings—modified to a mere ghost before the last step would inevitably be taken, but action must have been done.

Then the bag came to play, weightless under mechanic rotors and hinges separating inhuman strength to that terrestrial, a metallic body contained the sole restraint of upkeep above cement, and a clanking whirred onward, soon trampling of leaves, later distant rotary for all disbanded sensors to withhold until the dawn of inherent command.

Hopping wildly, bounding with soft taps against the ground of even gentler feet, and it just didn’t care, eyes pointed forward, a futile antennae set to no use until unusual notice proved otherwise. Colorful and protected, first impressions on the diminutive robot would have provided, skittishness, its creeping toward notified of, yet little remained beyond steps of metal, light scratching of destroyed wire against ground, dissonance of quietude spread beyond nonexistent scents of robotic presence, dazzled among a town of structure and nothingness.

The first came silently, a stalker of unintended nature to hinder forever command. Hands not unsimilar to its own, jammed tight beside the final body’s rather cylindrical form, purple to contrast none but its head of orange, it stood as a statue. The helmeted creature beside almost tripped at the sight, peeking from behind, soon through its taller guardian’s spaced legs, indifference applied to its nonexistent action as the groceries stood put.

Arms raised, a sound of shock came behind, but the frightening noise of buzzers and alarms of the figure ahead meant nothing, a rotating light reflecting off its head for little. Shattering to the emptiness of noise, the unperceived cry of panicked sound catered to all one in view, still barely holding balance among the compressed expression of digitized eyes.

The next was louder, likely caught solely by the alarm of sound’s inferno, drew near another of the same kind, exact appearance in tow—two legs, slightly little to appear natural, and a deep stare through a squint, as reverbating to habitat as any unnatural occurrence their own form of voice sounded through echoing halls of endless road. Eyes flashing before style similar to the electronic buzzer placed atop them both, the chant continued, more steps and sheer numbers growing as the identical crowd gathered and gathered, soon lining the street and buildings until none could be seen beneath any’s signaling lights.

The final sight would have been astonishing, to say the least. First was a hop of orange, each and all’s heads bounding up just slightly at the simultaneous step forward, a synchronized panic of the bots’ reign over the streets resonating so casually to a sole figure before them, its unintentional escortee blocked from senses for a moment by the immense count before them.

Too much to handle, it decided, and the helmeted creature hopped, collided with the torso beside itself—spilling a minor grapevine out the bag and latched to the dangling wire of the smallest robot—and exploded down the opposite direction, company soon disbanded in form of itself as well, command reinitiated seeing the fruit tossed away.

The pursuit was on, so many concurrent syllables of that single alarm sounding so far, so close behind, but all that mattered lay in keeping the bag safe, the contents within complete. They bounced, crushed and splatted their trailing juice upon the pavement, dashing back toward the very store summoned before, already deserted of life except insides, and to the end of the road, they finally reached. Backed to a standstill, the roundish one halted a moment, glanced back at the rapidly, clumsily approaching former protector, toward the sole side leading not to a formed wall, and continued its escape into the alleyway.

Soon, the sunlight returned, only to immediately disperse behind toppling trash cans and crushed garbage bags of the hallway behind. The thinned, exposed cable holding victory kept drawing so near, so many times when approached a cut stump or downed tree trunk of the woods, only to immediately disappear back to shade as it burst forward once more, each time, a hollow light, blue and red, signaled the intruded presence before nature, not even of the universe scribbled by nautical voyage of the notebook-clad boy responsible for the groceries’ guardian. Yet amongst all the chaos brought before trees toppled merely by sheer numbers, the chase continued, a single, uncrushed grape resonating as the sole guiding force of the entire crowd behind.

To another speck of light, beyond, beneath, before another path of fallen wood, the pursuers continued onward, finally until reaching the last sight needed to break free their will of continued effort. Paused before a great bulk of rock and bone, the hollowed crag stood evident to the scuttly creature standing in its nonexistent way, soon the closest robot of the following bunch, imminent to come the rest cloned. The forward one hurried toward the wooden post standing beside the cave’s entrance. The etches into it couldn’t be made from such a distance, also due to the decently-sized plug atop its audience’s dome, and it stumbled toward the entrance, spilling the last intact grape just before the darkness.

Objective in sight, it neared in usual pace until maybe three paces before, in which then displayed another bound of the creature before. Startled, it almost fell flat upon landing and turned back, a gaze of steel transmitted and received so many times through robotic bodies ahead and shrouded eyes possessed. A jumble of steps before, closing, approaching alike, and it lurched backward, its foot brushing against the fruit dropped by the very same as both clunked and tumbled into the deep darkness of the spring of shadows.

The signpost passed, disregarded immediately for interest in the spherical body dropped down below, just ahead, a step into the blinding blackness. Somehow, the bags still lay the very same as since the chase had begun, all nigh-perfectly attended, but it wasn’t complete without the mission designated to it specifically. Forward, its fate lay inevitable, yet some inexplicable force couldn’t make the final journey of the last step into an abyss. Maybe some unknown entity lurking above, a board undesignated for use until the moment, even recognizement of the post beside—the sole hint of some life anywhere around—but none could be helped, eventually. Its head spun toward the plaque, operation unintentional, and its eyes scanned the scratches ahead, spinning, hopping, whirring gone disregarded yet again from behind.

 _Rock Fossil Cavern_ , it read, then a drill-wielding bot finally reached its destination, slamming circuitry unconscious, the chassis shocked, plunged forward and into the void of the indistinct color of yellow stone lining the imperceivable walls.


End file.
